Common Council votes for Sydney Hih demolition

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The Milwaukee Common Council voted 13-2 Tuesday not to reconsider historic designation for the Sydney Hih, a complex of 19th century buildings in the Park East area. The decision allowed an appeal of the designation by the city, which controls the buildings, to stand.

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Hurray! I'd feel differently about Sidney Hih if it were surrounded by other historic buildings. But the reality is that there's nothing else there, no context, just a small island of mediocre 19th-century buildings that will be overshadowed by the Moderne and other larger, newer buildings. The vote to tear down is correct.

When are they going to start talking about tearing down that god-awfull blue glass eyesore between 3rd & 4th on Wisconsin Avenue? That architect must have spent about a minute and 28 seconds creating that exterior design.

Well said? Obviously you were not there. She is the least professional city official I have ever seen. I have heard southern construction workers with more ability to speak eloquently and conduct themselves more professionally in a public proceeding. Sorry but keep ur iPad at home Millie. Also she was contacted by people to have talks about Sydney Hih she did not respond.

I was not there, but I did watch it on tv. While she may not be well spoken enough to receive your endorsement, her point is spot on. The building is only worth saving if it's worth saving. It is historic, and has a valuable history, but none of that changes the fact that building by most counts appears to be beyond restoration.

I'm not in favor of parking lots, or gravel fields. I honestly don't care if it comes down or not. The building doesn't hamper my day in any way. I really don't understand the outsized love/hate this building engenders.

What she speaks to is desire vs. reality, and on this topic, she speaks from a pragmatic position. For that I gave her a "well said".

The developer interested in taking on the Sydney Hih project has direct experience in re-developing buildings in similar condition. Coggs has made repeated statements that do not reflect the truth. Whether purposeful or not, her statements amount to lying. She was contacted by several members of the public including someone working with John Raettig who wanted to set up a meeting to discuss the issue. She completely ignored them and then went on to say that she was never contacted. She has also claimed that bricks have been falling off the building complex which is completely untrue. She has claimed that the building is a safety hazard and must come down immediately, but she has recently toured the building herself, so it's unsafe to keep standing except when she wants to go in it..????

I couldn't care less if they get rehabbed or not. That's half of my point. They are not special enough to deserve this much love, nor are they such an impediment to the future that they need to come down immediately.

Like many, I am skeptical of Raettig's plans. By most accounts, they seem to be very topical estimates. The timing of "plan" is also rather suspicious. It is 11th hour. These buildings have been a topic for all of my 18 years in this City (not just the short time frames Ald Kovac suggests), and in all that time, no developer has been able to rehab them, not even during the go-go 90s. Mr. Raettig is not some super developer that understands the value in these buildings above all others. He's a developer, that deals in the same plaster and drywall as any other. If his plans are legit, fantastic. Sell the buildings to him and have at it.

But I believe the pragmatic, take 5 steps back approach, is that these buildings are likely beyond restoration. I was coming down McKinley just this weekend and I'm fairly certain there was a large chunk of the west wall that was missing. I'm not saying that was new or old damage, or even a my own misinterpretation of what I perceived, but that was what I recall.

If Raettig or another developer wants to risk his own money to restore those buildings let them do it. The truth of the matter is, city government should not be competing against the private sector in risky real estate speculation. Period.

Soliders Rest Home is truly historic and most definitly worth saving. By all means public and private funds should go towards saving this historic facility. Hospitals which served Civil War veterans are worth saving.

A good backhoe operator from the Operating Engineers Union can bring those buildings down in a matter of days. Then a few more days to load them into dump trucks for trip to a landfill. The bring in bulldozer operator from the Operating Engineers Union to fill in the lot with fill and gravel. I'd suggest placing a few storm sewer drains to collect rainfall and using the lot for paid parking until a developer comes along. People are willing to pay to park for BMO Harris Bradley Center events and Old World Third Street bars on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.

Since the powers that be are convinced Milwaukee absolutely needs three sports arenas just so the Bucks can have one all to themselves, undoubtly the new arena will likely go in the vacant Park East moonscape area. There just is no other place left to place a sports arena. The site of the US Cellular Arena is too small to place an arena large enough to host NBA teams. I'm not certain the Wisconsin Center folks will allow their beloved, but little used. Milwauekee Theatre to be demolished. This despite the Milwaukee Theatre competing with the Riverside Theatre and Marcus Center for the Performing Arts.

The rest of the Park East including the Sydney Hih area can then be used for parking for the new Harley Center arena for the Bucks. The BMO Harris Bradley Center can then be remodeled and renovated to be home for one of the many NHL franchises failing in warm weather southern cities. For some reason NHL teams seem to do much better in cold weather climates -- Chicago, Minneapolis, Detroit, etc.

This first step in making this happen starts with bringing in qualified union help for out of work members of the Operating Engineers Union. These well trained men and women can show just how fast that run-down building can be brought down without injuries or accidents.

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